"Sunrise was dawning when Los Angeles motorcycle police officer Bob Vernon saw a red pickup truck speed through a stop sign. He turned on his emergency lights and radioed that he was in pursuit. The pickup pulled over, and the officer approached. The officer said, ’Good morning, sir, may I see your--’ "He never finished the sentence. The driver shoved a gun toward the police officer's chest and fired from just inches away. The cop was knocked seven feet away. A few seconds later, the officer stood up, pulled his service revolver, and fired twice. The first bullet went through the open window and smashed the windshield. The second tore through the door and ripped into the driver’s left leg. "’Don’t shoot’ the driver screamed. What saved the police officer's life was dozens of layers of Kevlar, the super strong fabric used for bulletproof vests. Only three-eighths of an inch thick, Kevlar can stop bullets cold." “Put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand” (Eph. 6:13)

WBTU:

In our series on “Stand Firm,” we find this phrase being used in vs. 14. We find the word stand being used 4 times. 2 of those times in vs. 13.

Ephesians 6:13 is a fighter’s verse. We can hear the sound of combat when we read it. We can sense the desperate battle, of soldiers rushing to the front lines, and at the end of the verse, we can hear the sound of victory. This describes our situation. The “evil day” is here. We have armor of God. We are called to stand our ground and to fight to the end so that we may be still standing when the day is done. Some years ago Mark Bubeck wrote a book called “Overcoming the Adversary,” a call for “warfare prayers (Vs. 18)” to turn back the powers of darkness. In that book he asks why Satan seems to be so active in the world today. 3 answers:

1. Christians have ignored the idea of spiritual warfare. Maybe a reason for this is that some have gone to extremes so many have shied away from the subject altogether. However, we need to realize that there is a war going on. If we ignore this we are unprepared.

2. Satan is active today because we are living in the last days. “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.” 2 Timothy 3:1, NIV. There is a growing trend to view our days as the last of human history as we know it. If this is true, we need to be aware that Satan has redoubled his efforts, knowing that his time is short. “Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you! He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.”” Revelation 12:12, NIV.

3. Satan is gaining ground because society is rejecting God and embracing evil. Started with the idea that in public things need to be spiritually neutral to be inclusive, tolerant, and pluralistic. Instead of things staying spiritually neutral, the vacuum is being filled with all kinds of evil.